ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - At Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's palatial offices in Islamabad this week, the army chief sat down to deliver the head of government a message he did not want to hear: The time for talks with the troublesome Pakistani Taliban was over.

Sharif came to power a year ago promising to find a peaceful settlement with the Islamist militant group, but as round after round of talks failed, the powerful armed forces favoured a military solution.

Their patience finally ran out and, late on Tuesday afternoon, during a tense meeting, the army effectively declared it would override a crucial plank of the government's strategy and take matters into its own hands.

"The army chief and other military officers in the room were clear on the military's policy: the last man, the last bullet," a government insider with first-hand knowledge of the meeting told Reuters.

Asked to sum up the message General Raheel Sharif wanted to convey at the gathering, he added: "The time for talk is over."

The next day, Pakistani forces launched rare air strikes against militants holed up in the remote, lawless tribal belt near the Afghan border. It is not clear whether Sharif authorised the operation.

On Thursday, they backed that up with the first major ground offensive against the Taliban there, undermining Sharif's year-long attempt to end a bloody insurgency across his country through peaceful means.

Disagreement over the militant threat is the latest row to flare up between the government and military, and relations between the two branches of power are at their lowest ebb for years, according to government officials.

The government did say talks with the Taliban would go on.

"We will talk with those who are ready for it and the (military) operation is being launched against those who are not ready to come to the negotiating table," spokesman Pervez Rashid told local media on Thursday.

But the operations put the military, which has a long record of intervening in civilian rule through plots and coups, firmly back at the centre of Pakistan's security policy.

The balance of power is shifting at a time when foreign troops are preparing to withdraw from Afghanistan, and arch-rival India has just elected a Hindu nationalist leader promising to be more assertive on the international stage.

"This is the clearest signal yet that the army will dictate its terms now," a member of Sharif's cabinet said.

TALIBAN ON THE OFFENSIVE

The Pakistani Taliban, as distinct from the Afghan Taliban which is actively targeting NATO forces in Afghanistan, is believed to be behind attacks on Pakistani soldiers and civilians that have killed thousands in recent years.

The Pakistan army has distinguished between "good" Taliban like the feared Haqqani network - who do not attack Pakistani security forces but fight in Afghanistan - and "bad" Taliban, indigenous Pakistani militants who are seeking to create an Islamic state.

While Pakistan's military wants to go after the "bad" Taliban, it has, despite pressure from Washington, largely avoided taking on groups who launch attacks against coalition forces in Afghanistan from Pakistan's North Waziristan region.

Prompting the latest intervention, the Pakistani Taliban have become increasingly bold, striking the army in tribal areas including a recent battle in which an army major died. Earlier this month, nine soldiers were killed in an explosion near the Afghan border.

"We will avenge the blood of every last soldier. Talks or no talks, the army will retaliate," said one military official, who, like most others interviewed for this article, spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject.

The army has ruled Pakistan for more than half of its history. Sharif himself was toppled by the army in 1999 during his previous tenure as prime minister.

But, humiliated after a secret 2011 U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil, the army stood back from politics and supported last year's first democratic transition of power which brought Sharif back to office.

Sharif manoeuvred carefully, hand picking a new army chief and trying to forge a partnership with the military in the early days of his tenure, but the overtures had little lasting impact.

TRADE, DIPLOMACY

There are other signs of civil-military discord.

Sharif came to power promising to rebuild relations with India, but has been under pressure to toughen his stance from hardliners at home, particularly within the army.

The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars since independence from Britain in 1947, two of them over the still-disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir.

Sharif's policies towards India have been heavily scrutinised; some in the army justify its hefty budget by pointing to - and, critics say, playing up - the potential threat from India.

And despite signs the military has become more amenable to overtures from its old foe than in the past, a trade deal pushed by the prime minister and aimed at improving ties with India was cancelled at the last minute after pressure from the army, top government officials said.

Sharif now faces a dilemma over whether to accept an invitation by Indian Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi to attend his inauguration next week.

The army is also bitter about the trial of former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, who ousted Sharif from power in 1999 and was arrested after he returned to Pakistan to take part in last year's election.

Ties with Afghanistan have never been easy, but some officials believe the army wants to torpedo the government's relationship with a future Kabul administration, risking a deterioration in regional security as NATO troops prepare to leave this year.

Generals have jealously guarded the right to dictate policy on Afghanistan, seeing friendly guerrilla groups as "assets" to blunt the influence of India there.

TENSIONS COME TO SURFACE

Though simmering under the surface, tensions between the government and the army spilled into the open last month when a popular journalist was shot by unknown gunmen, and his channel, Geo News, blamed the army's powerful spy agency, the Directorate of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

Public criticism of the shadowy ISI is almost unheard of in Pakistan. In a rare public response, the army demanded that Geo News, the country's most-watched news channel, be shut down.

The government's media regulator has since resisted the army's demands to cancel the channel's license, which the military sees as a direct sign of defiance.

"Everyone was looking out to see how the government would treat the army in this crisis -- as a friend or foe?" said a senior military official. "But the government allowed this to become a free-for-all, army-hunting season."

For Sharif, buckling under military pressure is a major risk. "This is not about one TV channel but about freedom of expression and about living in a democracy," Rashid said. "We should live and let live."

But despite putting on a brave front, officials say the government is feeling under siege.

"Never in the last year has the government felt weaker or more vulnerable," one of Sharif's key economic advisers said. "Now every time we have to take a major decision, on India, on Afghanistan, we will have to think 'How will the army react?'"

A serving general said the army chief would always pick the "institution over the constitution if push comes to shove," adding: "As a society and a state, we have to avoid a context in which the army is pushed to do something it doesn't want to."

He has no right to dictate to the govt who has the mandate, they have dictated in past and results are in front of us. Things will be alot simpler if the Army just follows the order.

Funny hearing from PML N followers as who has mandate to dictate to whom. As commander in chief he has every right to dictate terms to protect his soldiers while our PM lives in relative safety of Riawand.

BTW talking of mandate, who gave PML N government mandate to protect Geo tv and emir sakeel??? can you enlighten me on that and also who gave the right to this government machinery to protect private corporation to an extend of even destroying the very fabric of government agency independence and also bring the whole Supreme Court of Pakistan into disrupt. This government is already going above and beyond the mendate that was provided to it by people of Pakistan.

Last time in power PML N thugs invaded supreme court and this time they ridicule head of ISI as target killer for every 8 hours and than are doing everything to destroy government agencies such as PEMRA and also destroying Supreme Court of Pakistan. It seems the days of NS dreaming of being called Emir ul Momaneen through 15 amendments are back again. Keep on this track you will get lesson from Army and people of Pakistan pretty soon.

Pakistan came into being on August 14, 1947. As the Creator willed it, the date corresponded with the empowering night of Ramadan 27 of the year 1366 after the Prophet’s Hijra. Its great destiny was thus set from the start

If we take our inspiration and guidance from the Holy Qur’an, the final victory, I once again say, will be ours… Do not be overwhelmed by the enormity of the task… You only have to develop the spirit of the Mujahids. You are a nation whose history is replete with people of wonderful character and heroism. Live up to your traditions and add to another chapter of glory. All I require of you now is that everyone… must vow to himself and be prepared to sacrifice his all… in building up Pakistan as a bulwark of Islam and as one of the greatest nations whose ideal is peace within and peace without… Islam enjoins on every Mussulman to give protection to his neighbors and to minorities regardless of caste and creed. Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Civilians tell the military with whom to fight not the other way around and thats how it works in democracy.

Currently it looks like military wants to revenge beheading of its soldiers which is not very professional and not very Islamic.

What Democracy?????

government protecting interest of private limited company rather than protecting its intelligence agency??? is this your democracy?

Government minister both at federal and state levels becoming spoke person of private media group and than having to visit the owner of that media group in dubai as if he is defector ruler of our country that they need to go meet him there??? is that your democracy.

Supreme Court judge making mockery of justice and refusing to stand down due to conflict of interest???? is that your democracy???

Government regulatory body is being arm twisted and harassed to protect interest of a private company over people of Pakistan. Is that your democracy??

The General has every right to question the decision of PM if the soo called peace talk is doing nothing but letting TTP rebuild and also attack our forces.

Pakistan came into being on August 14, 1947. As the Creator willed it, the date corresponded with the empowering night of Ramadan 27 of the year 1366 after the Prophet’s Hijra. Its great destiny was thus set from the start

If we take our inspiration and guidance from the Holy Qur’an, the final victory, I once again say, will be ours… Do not be overwhelmed by the enormity of the task… You only have to develop the spirit of the Mujahids. You are a nation whose history is replete with people of wonderful character and heroism. Live up to your traditions and add to another chapter of glory. All I require of you now is that everyone… must vow to himself and be prepared to sacrifice his all… in building up Pakistan as a bulwark of Islam and as one of the greatest nations whose ideal is peace within and peace without… Islam enjoins on every Mussulman to give protection to his neighbors and to minorities regardless of caste and creed. Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Don't forget the Indian support for Geo and the journalist at the centre of shooting. Why is India concerned about a Pakistani channel?

Geo has admitted in one of its publication that it received $9 millions from UK and $3million from USA (might be in other order).

So the fundamental question is what was that for? given how they paraded DG ISI pictures on the tv for 8 hours, I guess it doesnt take much to guess what was that for. So if that is what they are getting paid for to do, and PML N government is doing everything to protect Geo. It raises a serious national security matter.

What does PML N and Nawaz Sherif want? they are trying to fight an open battle with Armed Forces? I can only see 1999 situation fast approaching at the moment and it wont be long before Army gives Nawaz another boot.

Pakistan came into being on August 14, 1947. As the Creator willed it, the date corresponded with the empowering night of Ramadan 27 of the year 1366 after the Prophet’s Hijra. Its great destiny was thus set from the start

If we take our inspiration and guidance from the Holy Qur’an, the final victory, I once again say, will be ours… Do not be overwhelmed by the enormity of the task… You only have to develop the spirit of the Mujahids. You are a nation whose history is replete with people of wonderful character and heroism. Live up to your traditions and add to another chapter of glory. All I require of you now is that everyone… must vow to himself and be prepared to sacrifice his all… in building up Pakistan as a bulwark of Islam and as one of the greatest nations whose ideal is peace within and peace without… Islam enjoins on every Mussulman to give protection to his neighbors and to minorities regardless of caste and creed. Muhammad Ali Jinnah

Don't forget the Indian support for Geo and the journalist at the centre of shooting. Why is India concerned about a Pakistani channel?

Geo is an Indian sponsored channel. Geo receives foreign funding from not only India, but also the US. Geo propagates Indian filth in Pakistan. Geo attacks the Pakistani army and all of its institutes. Geo also has the backing of the Punjabi government. Anyone can do the math.

Gen Raheel was selected because they thought he would be a pushover. Let's hope he does a bit of pushing himself. Pakistan supports it's soldiers even through we have had some rotten ones. Generally it's probably the only institution left that can says its there to protect Pakistan.

Alhamdullilah..... The flag of Tauheed has been raised, the time for Martyrdom has arrived for the Mard e Mujahid!

May Allah Succeed Pakistan, its Jawaans and InshaAllah the highlevelled military officials (please note: ive hated them for the past 6 years for doing nothing) for killing and taking out every bastar.d. enemy that kills and bombards our Pakistani children, women, men, elders, soldiers and policemen!

Go to hell, khwariji kaafir, the dogs of Hell!
I pray the military officials do NOT bow and compromise on this matter due to the pressure of pm, calls from fetish master obama to ganjaa shifaa who pass it on to Gen. Shareef!,

another policy failure of N league where the army has shafted Noora . i feel sorry for this powerless 'leader' who cannot appoint PCB chief, cannot control his army chief, cannot even ban a stupid news channel!

with their sheer stupidity ( something inherent ) they( N league) were all too eager to 'talk' with the ttp and had NO AGENDA to begin with, the TTP was dictating terms and even meeting places and at the same time, regrouping else where to launch attacks

^ I have told you before, in any given war, both channels must be kept open. Firepower and dialogue both, for this is a war to win hearts and minds of the local people. Therefore no harm in dialogue (muzakaraat) is also necessary and other big players like USA do this too.

Hopefully armed forces do wipe out TTP scumbags, cleanse the area like they did in Swat But dont 'celebrate' like you are now. They will retaliate so armed forces must be swift and protect its own assets + the economic and environmental damage + fatigue the army + shrink resources and other costs. Therefore a less 'costly' measure such as dialogue was essential.

Wiping them out would be a success but is dwarfed when you understand that once upon a time armed forces never had to worry about its Western front. Now are so deeply engaged. FATA, Waziristan, Swat. I dont know what you are 'happy' about

Pakistani politicians are firmly to blame for the mess on our north western border. Yes musharaf started this but PPP and now N league governments have no balls. If they did they would stand firm and use the 500000 plus men under arms to wipe out this menace but getting the local people aboard. But they don't care about the people as they are too busy looting. Blame squarely lies with the government and its inability to make tough decision. They are too interested in buying BMW's

1) PPP didn't do anything during their tenure because their top echelon was high on some grade-A charas.....no joke.

2) PML-N is idle and subservient because Nawaz is a scared rabbit, he is afraid and wants to protect Lahore/Raiwind.

3) Army is by no means a holy cow. Currently it is the biggest land mafia in Pakistan and have their hands deep in various other businesses.

However what I like about them is that they are a progressive and nationalist institution....but unfortunately time and time again they have dropped the ball in the later stages whenever the "general public has entrusted them with responsibility."

@Gallant is neither 100% right nor he is 100% wrong in all honesty.

It was the Army which patronized Nawaz and it was the Army which patronized the militants(both local and foreign) and now they need to clean up this mess.

And hypothetically speaking if let's say there is a 1%chance for a coup d'etat and our Army takes power....they should do more than just mere economic growth. They'll have to turninto radical reformists and implement reforms whilst keeping in view of our past mistakes. If they implement the same old method which every other dictator had implemented in our foolish history then the Army should zip-it and stay in their barracks.

ISLAMABAD: Appreciating resolve of Pakistani troops and locals in the tribal areas, Army Chief General Raheel Sharif on Tuesday said the whole nation has rejected the “misplaced ideology of the terrorists,” who he said have clearly lost their cause and are being marginalised.

Speaking to the troops, he commended their professional commitment and paid rich tributes to them for their sacrifices in bringing peace and normalcy to the troubled regions bordering Afghanistan, said a press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).

The statement came during his visit of the field formations deployed in Waziristan tribal agencies today.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Sharif reiterated Pakistan Army's continued whole hearted support for tribal brethren under all circumstances.

He reviewed the progress of mega and micro projects of socio economic significance, being undertaken by the Army, and appreciated them for quality of work and timely completion in the area.

The road network was already beginning to bring great economic dividend to the local residents of the region, it added.

Gen Sharif also visited other community development schemes in health, education, water and power projects, as part of successful programs for rehabilitation of the people.

Later, the COAS visited recently established Cadet College Spinkai Raghzai and lauded the college administration for the standard of education and administration being maintained.

Speaking to cadets, he said that these education projects completed by the Army would go a long way to groom a new generation of young Pakistanis from such remote areas and integrate them in the national mainstream.

PESHAWAR: The spokesman of the Mehsud faction of the banned Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) Azam Tariq on Wedesnday announced that his group under the leadership of Khalid Mehsud, has formally separated from the central outlawed militant group.

The spokesman of the Mehsud group, who was also a central member of the Taliban shura, made the announcement in a press conference from an undisclosed location.

Azam said that promotion of sectarian mindset and individual ideologies has created rift among the Taliban and they were deviating from the real cause. He said that the present Taliban regime was carrying out bomb attacks on public places with fake names and also money was being extracted from madrasas and other institutions which was not acceptable.

He added that the other Taliban factions were also becoming distrustful of the main organisation.

Azam further said that the Mehsud group had tried to reform the TTP, adding that despite its efforts, conniving elements in the organisation had emerged successful.

The spokesman said that these elements had handed over management of the central organisation into the hands of unseen forces.

Two factions of the TTP, the umbrella grouping for disparate militant organisations, have been locked in bloody clashes for the past several weeks.

Differences emerged after Hakimullah Mehsud was killed by a US drone in November last year and with a crisis developing over future leadership of the organisation.

The conflict brought Mehsud’s followers led by commander Sheheryar Mehsud against supporters of Khan Said Sajna.

Infighting among the factions has also impeded and undermined what little progress had been made in the peace negotiations with the government.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!

They severed ties with the TTP...and interestingly it was this very same Mehsud tribe which pioneered the TTP itself.

From now on Mehsud tribe and TTP are two distinct identities, my view is that the Mehsud tribe is a scared little ********* at this moment feeling all vulnerable which is evident from what the language their spokesperson used:

"Azam said that promotion of sectarian mindset and individual ideologies has created rift among the Taliban and they were deviating from the real cause. He said that the present Taliban regime was carrying out bomb attacks on public places with fake names and also money was being extracted from madrasas and other institutions which was not acceptable.

He added that the other Taliban factions were also becoming distrustful of the main organisation.

Azam further said that the Mehsud group had tried to reform the TTP, adding that despite its efforts, conniving elements in the organisation had emerged successful.

The spokesman said that these elements had handed over management of the central organisation into the hands of unseen forces."

Now basically they are using their fork tongue to play on our jahil public's perception.....

Ah ! The sneaky Dawn News........this is the new revised version with some new key details. They also changed the heading of the news due to the new details which came out or the people at Dawn News missed earlier.

“We announce our defection from the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, we have chosen Khalid Mehsud as the new leader for South Waziristan,” announced Tariq.

Khalid Mehsud was a key ally of former Mehsud Taliban chief and former TTP number two Waliur Rehman Mehsud, who was killed in a US drone strike in May last year.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!

Hmmm.....recently I have re-evaluated and modified my previous stance vis-a-vis Afghan Taliban-TTP relationship after reading a bit of history and observing various other factors.

This TTP movement is entirely indigenous to Pakistan and it was spearheaded by the Mehsud tribe. Only later some other FATA tribes joined in.
__________________________________________

This current split in TTP is fundamentally a split in Mehsud tribe;

"Khalid Mehsud was a contender for the TTP’s top slot after Hakimullah’s death, but the post eventually was handed to Maulana Fazlullah who hails from the scenic Swat valley and is the first non-Mehsud to lead the TTP.

The conflict brought those backing Khalid Mehsud against supporters of Taliban commander Sheheryar Mehsud, who claim to be the followers of the late Hakimullah Mehsud."

One party of Mehsud tribe wants to continue the Mehsud domination of TTP whilst the other party accepts Mullah Radio as its leader.

What you are saying is that Ittefaq Foundry and Ittefaq Steel are two different organizations.

What I am saying is that they are run by partners, share logistics and best practices, use the same accountant as well, attend each other's happiness and events.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!

They are not supporting, but rather they are letting them be as is if they are not based in Pakistan.

Hakim Bey: Don't just survive while waiting for someone's revolution to clear your head
Napoleon Bonaparte: The world suffers a lot, not because of the violence of bad people, but because of the silence of good people!